COVID-19 case numbers continue to drop, but three more St. Albertans have died from the virus, the province reported today.
Data from the province gathered from May 17 to May 23 showed the seven-day case rate per 100,000 was 70.4 compared to the 100.6 reported on May 18.
The province reported there were 49 new COVID cases in St. Albert from May 17 to May 23 compared to the 70 cases reported last week.
There have been 83 COVID deaths in St. Albert since the pandemic began, as reported by the province on May 25.
Sturgeon County COVID cases have also dropped. The province reported the seven-day case rate per 100,000 was 28.6. Last week the province reported the seven-day case rate was 78.8.
The number of new COVID cases in the county was eight, compared to the 22 cases reported on May 18.
There have been no new COVID deaths in the county. The number of people who have died from the virus remained at 18.
Morinville also saw a drop in COVID cases. Data from the province reported on May 25 showed the seven-day case rate per 100,000 was 43.8 compared to the 96.4 reported last week.
There were five new COVID cases in Morinville from May 17 to May 23 compared to the 11 reported by the province the week prior.
The number of people who have died from COVID in Morinville remained at 17.
During a May 25 COVID update Health Minister Jason Copping said the peak of the BA.2 cases has passed, and the current wave is receding.
The average PCR test positivity rate from May 17 to May 23 was 17.5 per cent compared to the 19.93 per cent reported last week.
Copping said positivity rates have been decreasing for the past month, which indicates there is less transmission.
Wastewater levels are also trending down, and the number of patients in hospital with COVID has also dropped.
The total number of people hospitalized with the virus in Alberta was 1,040, as reported by the province on May 25. Last week the province reported there were 1,165 people hospitalized with COVID.
The number of people in ICU with COVID also dropped. The province reported there were 31 people admitted to the ICU compared to the 42 reported last week.
“There is still lots of COVID virus around, especially in Edmonton and Calgary, and we can't expect it to go to zero, It remains a real risk, especially to those who are unvaccinated or under-vaccinated,” said Copping.
Copping also gave an update on Evusheld, a COVID-19 preventative drug approved by Health Canada for people 12 years and older who are immunocompromised and are unable to get a COVID-19 vaccination.
The preventative drug will be available to eligible Albertans starting on May 26.
Evusheld is not recommended for those who have COVID-19 or who have recently been around someone who has.
“It's given before exposure to help prevent infection in someone who is just unable to mount a full immune response to the vaccine,” Copping said.
Information about eligibility can be found at www.ahs.ca/covid
Alberta's chief medical officer of health Dr. Deena Hinshaw said there were 55 more COVID deaths in the province from May 17 to May 23, an average of about eight people a day.
The province reported 4,507 Albertans have died from COVID since the beginning of the pandemic.
Hinshaw said the province identified their first case of the BA.4 sub-variant through surveillance last week.
“The appearance of new variants and sub-variants is not surprising. This is what viruses do. As we continue to live with COVID we can expect to see sub-variants and variants emerge,” she said.
Hinshaw said BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants have been identified internationally and although evidence suggests they are more transmissible than earlier versions, neither appears to cause an increased risk of severe illness.
